Latinos may hold sway over immigration reform

The president ordered a halt to deportation of some young illegal immigrants, a step assailed by conservative Republicans. (The Washington Post, The Washington Post/Getty Images)

For more than a decade, the debate in Washington over immigration policy has been stalemated over what to do with the estimated 11 million people — most of them Latino — who are in the U.S. unlawfully.

Latino activists and many Democratic politicians have backed plans that would allow at least some of those people to become citizens. Supporters call that a "path to citizenship," while opponents call it "amnesty."

Opponents of illegal immigration, backed by many Republicans, have argued for stronger measures to control the border and for stepped-up efforts to find and deport illegal residents.

Some prominent Republican strategists have worried that the party's tough stand on immigration could alienate Latino voters for years to come.

In the GOP's ranks, however, many voters have strongly held views opposing anything that smacks of amnesty. And other Republican strategists believe the immigration reform law adopted under President Ronald Reagan, which included amnesty for about 2.7 million illegal residents, hurt the party by adding a mostly Democratic group to the voting rolls.

In 2007, President George W. Bush tried to reconcile both sides with a compromise bill that would have given each part of what it wanted. The effort divided Republicans and died in the Senate.

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney took a tough line during the primaries on immigration, attacking rivals as being soft on the issue. Since then, Romney has largely avoided the subject. He has pledged to complete a high-tech fence along the U.S.-Mexico border, to create a national database that employers would be required to check before hiring anyone and to expand the temporary worker system to bring in more seasonal farm labor legally. He has promised to oppose any plan that would give illegal residents a leg up on obtaining citizenship.

President Barack Obama promised in his 2008 campaign that he would push for comprehensive immigration reform, including a path to citizenship. He failed to do that.

His administration has stepped up deportations of illegal residents — sending a record number out of the country — focusing on those who have committed crimes. The administration also has increased efforts to find and punish companies that illegally hire immigrants who lack work permits.

At the same time, Obama has ordered a halt to deportations of young people who were brought to the U.S. illegally by their parents. He has directed other steps to shield people who have clean records and community ties, whom the administration considers a low priority for deportation. Those steps have been popular with Latino groups but have been denounced by conservative Republicans as a backdoor amnesty.